Wind to pick up tonight through Saturday

This morning’s calm sunny weather is going to give way to breezy, dry conditions through Saturday, forecasters said. West winds of 6 to 11 mph are possible later today with a high of 69. Tonight, the wind moves to the south and could bring gusts to 21 mph under clear skies and a low in the lower 40s. Friday is expected to be the warmest of the season so far with a high of 74 under mostly sunny skies, but winds from the southwest will blow at 6 to 15 mph with gusts to about 23. The National Weather Service said Saturday should see an increase in the wind with gusts to 41 mph out of the southwest and sustained winds of 18 to 23 mph under mostly cloudy skies and a high of 67 in Spokane. The weather calms down and cools to a high of 62 on Sunday with mostly sunny skies. Forecasters said that low pressure disturbances are expected to move across the northern edge of a large ridge of higher air pressure currently over the Pacific Northwest. A strengthening Pacific jet stream in the upper atmosphere is expected to drop southward into southern British Columbia by Saturday, triggering a surface low over central Alberta, which will draw a trailing cold front and wind over the Inland Northwest.